BETHANY, Conn. — The Town of Bethany's Parks and Recreation director is out of a job after she offered her resignation Wednesday night. The action came after sexual assault allegations against a former employee and camp counselor came to light.
Bethany's Board of Selectmen held a five-hour meeting Wednesday to address the issue, in which Director Janice Howard, Assistant Director and Summer Camp Director Anthony Cofrancesco were placed on leave. According to First Selectwoman Paula Cofrancesco, Howard offered her resignation the same night.
It all began June 25 after the arrest of a former school and town employee, 25-year-old Anthony Mastrangelo. He is accused of sexually assaulting at least four young girls during his time at the Parks and Recreation Department and then a fifth victim afterward.
He was also a volunteer, substitute teacher, and intern at Bethany Public Schools.
The allegations first came out in December 2022; Mastrangelo was removed from having any contact with children, but parents said they were never informed.
One resident said Mastrangelo violated her child in their own home and that her kids knew Mastrangelo from the summer camp, and she had even hired him as a babysitter.
At the time, the resident didn't know Mastrangelo was the subject of an 18-month-long sexual assault investigation. She told FOX61 that her child was assaulted more than a year after the allegations first came out.
There was a meeting on July 3 where parents expressed their frustrations and anger. Paula Cofrancesco said at the time, she didn't blame her parents for their frustrations. However, she was told by police not to say anything during the investigation.
“We were told that we could not address the issue while the police investigation remained open and were told investigative authorities would follow up with us,” Paula said. “That investigation lasted an alarmingly long time, and I was never contacted by anyone from day one.”
During the meeting, the parents demanded answers from the superintendent and first selectman, with some calling for them to resign.
Nearly three weeks later, on July 23, angry parents again demanded answers at a special meeting. The meeting lasted nearly three hours. Several residents directed much of their anger at the first selectwoman.
“You did not say a word to any of these Park and Rec parents that there’s a pedophile on the loose in Bethany,” shared one Bethany resident.
Residents had created a petition demanding transparency after the meeting in early July that did not explain why town officials never informed them about Mastrangelo.
At Tuesday night’s meeting, both the first selectwoman and the town attorney claimed that since the allegations came forward, changes have been made to the Parks and Recreation Department's policies. These include a “hands-off” policy in which staff is prohibited from having children sit on their laps, giving piggyback rides, etc.
They added that security cameras were installed in the annex earlier this month.
Still, parents remained furious that they only learned of the allegations in late June when Mastrangelo was arrested.
Residents also learned during Tuesday night's meeting that Howard had caught legal counsel and wouldn't attend the meeting. It was also confirmed by the first selectwoman that Howard had a personal relationship with the Mastrangelo family, having even gone on vacations together.
Mastrangelo was also employed by the first selectwoman's husband after being let go by the Parks and Recreation department.
The calls for Howard to be fired and for First Selectwoman Paula Confrancesco were amplified.
During Wednesday's Board of Selectman meeting Wednesday to discuss disciplinary actions for Howard, the board decided Howard and Anthony Cofrancesco should be placed on leave. It was then that Howard offered her a letter of resignation from the department.
Paula Cofrancesco said to FOX61 that the town would be working with Howard's legal counsel regarding the resignation.
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Jennifer Glatz is a digital content producer at FOX61 News. She can be reached at jglatz@fox61.com.
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